Osiyo~

Today I have a special guest who is a new and very dear friend and fellow horsewoman who has been instrumental in helping me through an, at-times, unbearably intolerable week. Please welcome the multi-talented and lovely Linda Nightingale to the Ranch! She’s brought her new book to share. I absolutely LOVE this cover and can’t wait to read my copy of the book. Here’s Linda to share about the book.

Gambler’s Choice

By Linda Nightingale

A novel about people who love horses…

From The Wild Rose Press

Cover Artist: Debbie Taylor

Editor: Mary Harmony

Tagline:   An English aristocrat and a Virginia socialite go head-to-head—and feet-to-feet—in a battle over ownership of a very special horse.

Rating: Spicy

Digital Price: $4.99

Print Price: $16.99

Here’s a video trailer to enjoy in lieu of a blurb. 😀

Gambler’s Choice:

Rebecca McQuaid was in England for one reason.

To find the perfect match.

Size was important. Becca was a tall girl. Money was of no consequence whatsoever. Becca was a wealthy girl. Heart mattered most. He must have the heart to go the distance. She dreamed of a partnership that would last a lifetime. But looks did rank quite high on her list of priorities.

“I simply can’t ride an ugly horse. That would be like dating an ugly man.” Tossing her long blonde hair over her shoulder, she laughed and winked at her friend.

Meg shot her a frown, her tone accusing Becca of being an uncivilized colonist. “Rebecca McQuaid, you say the damnedest things.”

An appreciative chuckle turned her around to squint into the sun. A tall, elegant, dark figure of a man on a magnificent horse caught her imagination mid-stride. She couldn’t see the rider’s face, but she knew he’d overheard the exchange with her friend. He saluted her with a tap of his whip to the brim of his hat as he rode past. Excitement capered over her, and she smiled. The horse’s muscled, blood bay rump glistened. The stallion was sixteen-two hands, fit and impeccably groomed.

“Nice buns. That one’s good-looking enough for me.” She elbowed her friend. “Who is it?”

Meg shaded her eyes. “Gambler’s Choice and Austen Heath. Both horse and rider satisfy your criteria, my dear girl.”

“The horse is handsome.” She wished she had gotten a better look at the bay, but he was a mahogany blaze in the morning sun. “Are you telling me the rider is?”

“That’s the general consensus, but Austen hides in that rambling, dark mansion of his.” Meg studied the pair picking up a trot along the arena. “Fierce competitors. Hard to beat at Intermediate. We’ll see how they handle Advanced.”

“An Advanced horse?” Becca wriggled her shoulders. “I’m in the market.”

“Look elsewhere.” Meg’s finger jutted at Becca’s nose. “Austen won’t sell Gambler for love or money. Guaranteed. Not even for the kind of money you’re willing to spend.”

“Meggie.” She linked arms with her friend. “Everything has a price.”

Meg balked like a donkey. “You’re in a different world, princess.”

“Well, not everything. Love doesn’t have a price.” Pain wrenched her heart as a memory of the breakup with Daniel flashed through her mind. The hurt was too fresh to even think of another man. “But I’m not in the market for love.”

Becca had found that the best way to protect her heart was to play spoiled little rich girl. She had that part down pat, and, as Winston Churchill had said, There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man. She was looking for a horse to fall in love with and help mend her broken heart.

*****

Linda and Bonito perform a Musical Freestyle to Phantom of the Opera

From the time I was born, I was in love with horses. Every Christmas, I’d rush to the window to see if there was a pony tied to a tree. Sadly, there never was until my parents moved to a small farm near where we’d formerly lived. Then they bought me a black paint gelding I named First Fling. I was thirteen at the time. From that beginning, after I married, I went on to breed Egyptian Arabians and later the magnificent Andalusian horse. My stallion Bonito was three times National Champion.

So, it was predestined that at some time I would write a book about horses and the people who love them. I can testify that this love can be one to distraction! I had never participated in 3-Day Eventing, a very demanding and dangerous sport, but my friend in Florida was an eventer. If I ran into a problem with the technical information, I called Helen. She’d walk me through the event. I didn’t ramble off into too much detail because I didn’t want to bore the non-horsey reader. The techniques of the half-pass, the shoulder-in, and the canter pirouette are probably not familiar to most people outside the horse aficionado.

Gambler’s Choice is the name of a jumping class in a horse show. I think that name and the excitement of that race against the clock inspired the book. In this class, each team (horse and rider) that makes a clean round goes on to the next. The fences are raised, and again they must beat the best time of other entries. A sit-on-the-edge-of-your-seat kind of experience.

I named the equine star after the class. Though the book is a romantic suspense, the story is really about two people who love one horse. Becca is willing to pay any amount for Gambler’s Choice. Austen is not going to sell his best friend for any price. Perhaps, a horse person is the only one who’d understand how dramatic this conflict is.

I love to chat with readers so come see me at these locations around cyberland.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LNightingale

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LindaNightingaleAuthor

Buy Link: print http://ow.ly/YaLsh or digital http://ow.ly/YaLFD

Web Site: http://www.lindanightingale.com – Visit and look around. There’s a free continuing vampire story.

Blog: https://lindanightingale.wordpress.com/ – Lots of interesting guests & prizes

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4839311.Linda_Nightingale

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/lbnightingale1/

Book Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03972_A_5-Y

Thank you for visiting and sharing GC with my readers today, Linda. I can’t wait for news on future projects!

Dodadagohvi~